Halifax DT627

yahya said:

If the containers and packages were to be dropped from the bomb bay, then why the dispatcher was still needed?

Click to expand...

The Air Despatchers were responsible for preparing, loading and despatching supplies and equipment from military aircraft.
The Dispatchers helped the agents or goods out of the aircraft .

Click to expand...

and ...

There were other precautions: the targets for the drops would only be known to the pilot and navigator, although the dispatcher would be told the number and sex of agents they would be taking and the contents of any containers.

Click to expand...

According to the two quotations , not all containers and packages could be dropped from the bomb bay. What is more the members of the crew didn't know all about a mission. Each one knew a part only. As a result the pilot knew the target/targets, the navigator the way/destination point/points and the dispatcher knew about what should be dropped there. IMHO that's the reason for the dispatcher's presence there.

BTW ... the dispatcher also could be the flight engineer or the top gunner.

yahya said:

The order of seats in the table is mixed. If memory serves, in Polish custody, the navigator commanded a special mission.

Click to expand...

Here it shows both F/O. I don't write 'em, I just report 'em

Wurger said:

and ...



According to the two quotations , not all containers and packages could be dropped from the bomb bay. What is more the members of the crew didn't know all about a mission. Each one knew a part only. As a result the pilot knew the target/targets, the navigator the way/destination point/points and the dispatcher knew about what should be dropped there. IMHO that's the reason for the dispatcher's presence there.

BTW ... the dispatcher also could be the flight engineer or the top gunner.

Click to expand...

I agree with you. If agents or paratroopers were on board, then the air despatcher's presence was a must.

If I am not mistaken, there were three kinds of 'goods' dropped from the 138 Sq. aircraft.

• The tubular CLE containers of various types, which were about 6-feet long on average and required three or four men to lift them when filled in with arms. I assume that they were too large and heavy to be manually dropped out by the despatcher unless a dedicated roller system on the aircraft floor or a release system was present. Given their size, the bomb bay would be a perfect place to keep them unless it was occupied by extra fuel tanks on the long-range missions like in Central Europe.
• The packages, which were slightly smaller. I presume that the dispatcher could handle them himself.
• And something in shape of a bag or a backpack carried by individual agents or paratroopers if they were present.

Actually, I've never seen a good description of the SD Halifax airdrop systems or its sketches, hence I am only guessing.

As for navigating to a DZ, if located in Central Europe, that must have been a very laborious task for the crew. If that was the navigator who was tasked with finding the DZ, and then the way home, I would consider the burden imposed on him as tremendous. I suppose that the pilot must have also been acquainted with the location of the DZ and the signals and codes provided on the ground. I am not sure if the map reading, dead reckoning or the Mk I eyeball and sextant were the only means to find a needle in a haystack. There is actually a scarcity of documents detailing mission planning, and the observations related to the navigation problems. I always considered that given the HF DF capability of the Bomber Command aircraft, the LF/MF radio compass could have been utilized for navigation after tuning in to known broadcast stations located eg. in Sweden or Denmark, or even in the Reich. The range of the Gee was obviously too short to provide accurate navigation over Central Europe.

fubar57 said:

Here it shows both F/O. I don't write 'em, I just report 'em

View attachment 810739​

Click to expand...

Yes, I see. The functions and tasks of the deceased crew are even more mixed in that list.

With the reference to the DT627, there are some pictures of the Special version with relatively close serials, which seem to have been equipped with some sort of radio equipment that I cannot identify. The images can be found here:




A vertical whip aerial can be seen just under the navigator's position, aft the Pitot's tube. Judging by its length, it seems that it covered the VHF band.

Similarly, the port side just under the pilot's canopy sports an aerial (a dipole?), which also seems to cover the VHF band. I assume that a similar aerial was installed on the starboard.

What kind of equipment these aerials have served? Were they an early version of the Rebecca? Or a part of the the BABS or SBA or GCA blind landing system? If memory serves, it operated at ca. 37 MHz. However, the early version of the blind approach antenna resembled a "towel rail" installed under the nose of the RAF bombers.

The whip under the navigator's station was also present on later versions with full glazed nose. The Rebecca aerials can also be seen on this Halifax from the link below.


Did the whip simply serve a VHF communication radio which replaced the obsolete TR9F from ca. 1943?

Another photo of a Halifax of a different iteration, with the odd whip antenna below the navigator's stand.